Annabelle Leigh
by addisonshay
Summary: Gabe Lewis is no longer doomed to be Forever Alone. *Insert Meme* Anyway, written for those that pity poor Gabe and secretly hope he'll find someone...or maybe I'm forever alone in that wish? Seriously, who even writes a fanfic about a guy like Gabe?
1. Chapter 1

_Annabelle Leigh_

"The Office" Fanfiction Piece

By:

Disclaimer: I do not own the Office or any other Dunder-Mifflin employees, etc, etc.

_It was many and many a year ago,__  
><em>_In a kingdom by the sea,__  
><em>_That a maiden there lived whom you may know__  
><em>_By the name of ANNABEL LEE;__  
><em>_And this maiden she lived with no other thought__  
><em>_Than to love and be loved by me_.

-From "Annabel Lee" by Edgar Allen Poe

Chapter One

_Monday Morning_

_10:12 A.M_

_Scranton, Pennsylvania _

_-Gabe Talking Head-_

Gabe Lewis could feel the cheap vinyl of the plastic blinds against his shoulder blade. He shifted and stared straight ahead, and blinked once. "This will end in suffering. Luckily, I still have some say in who will suffer."

He paused, inhaling deeply. "This whole office lacks respect for others, particularly authority." He pretended to cough, and the motion caused his Adam's apple to bob. The camera zoomed in on his bobbing Adam's apple, and followed the movement, shaking the screen.

Gabe furrowed his eyebrows and his expression became perplexed. "Wh-what are you doing?"

The camera continued to follow the movements of his Adam's apple.

"Hello?" His eyes bulged slightly. "Excuse me? What are you doing? Are you filming me? I have important… things to say! Stop doing that! I have been HUMILATED by everyone in this entire (BLEEP BLEEP) office! Listen!"

The camera shakes violently, attempting to capture the rapid movement and bobbing of Gabe's Adam's apple.

"Are you filming me or not?" A shot from behind, through the blinds, shows Gabe raising his sleeve to wipe his eyes. The other employees snicker silently and imitate wiping their eyes.

The screen stopped moving up and down and shook right to left.

One Month Earlier

Monday Morning

Approximately Five Feet from the Dunder-Mifflin Elevator

Gabe curses under his breath and checks his watch. Late, late, late. He tucks his black briefcase deeper into his armpit and rushes quickly towards the elevator. He is aware of a distant clicking behind him, like heels.

"He-y!" A high voice laden with a lilting southern accent calls. Gabe freezes for a mere millisecond, before steeping onto the elevator and glancing behind him.

. A young woman, presumably a bit younger than him, is stepping onto the elevator, and he blinks, as if he's imagining her. His eyes nearly leap out of his skull as they begin to register what they are seeing- which is a lot. His brain automatically forms a list. First off, her heels are too high, her skirt is too short, and her shirt is too tight AND too low.

Gabe's eyes and brain continue to drink in the sight of her with a mixture of horror and fascination. He estimates her height to be around 5'4, to his 6'3, factoring in her heels, and the fact that her blonde hair appeared to have a gallon of hairspray in it. Her skin is pale, but with a slight creamy undertone, like lotion, he decides.

His senses are either hypersensitive or on overload, because his nostrils are overwhelmed with perfume-something flowery- he thinks- and he hears the click of her heels on the tile.

"He-y!" She says again, and he realizes he hasn't looked at her face. Coated in make-up, small, heart-shaped, a high forehead framed by more of that blonde hair, and wide doe-like eyes that are a deep blue, looking straight into his—and Gabe realizes he's been staring blankly at her for more than a minute. She beams, and his eyes are drawn to a wide, overly-white smile.

"Hey-y there!" She says for a third time, and Gabe is finally drawn out of his…observations.

"Oh, um, hi." He stammers, fiddling with his briefcase. He hasn't decided if she's attractive or not. Alright, he concedes, she's attractive, almost too attractive- although, really, she's a little bit too much of _everything._

"Soooo! Do you work at-" She pulls a slip of paper from her purse and squints at it. "Dun, er, der-Miffin?"

"Um, yes." He replies. _Why is he "umming"? _He asked himself. There is nothing to um about! Speak with conviction, Gabe, conviction and authority!

She squeals and- he can hardly believe his eyes- claps her hands together. "Ohhh! My word! D' ya really? Do you enjoy it?"

"YES." He cringes. Too loud, and he sounds like a deaf old man or a Nazi. So much for speaking with conviction and authority…well, a Nazi is authority…he realizes.

She is still beaming at him. "Ohh! Guess what?" She doesn't wait for his reply, before she gushes; "I'm applyin' for a job at Dunder- Miffin!" Gabe can actually _hear_ the exclamation points on the end of her sentences.

Gabe manages a small, awkward tight smile in her direction and she giggles. He feels his smile become a bit more natural, and he realizes it's because of her giggle. She has a…cute giggle.

Gabe mumbles something under his breath, and she giggles again. "What? Sorry, honey, I didn't hear you!"

"What…Oh, I didn't say anything." He says quickly. She's still beaming at him. Why is she still smiling? Does it not hurt, smiling _that _much?

"So! What's your name?" She asks, overly friendly.

"Gabe." He says.

"Abe? Like the President! Well, come to think of it, you do resemble him quite a bit-"

"Um, G-abe." He uncomfortably corrects her, afraid she'll be upset, but her blue eyes light up. "Ohhh! short for Gabriel? Like the angel Gabriel in the bible?"

"What? Erm, no, not an angel-what, oh uh yes it's short for Gabriel, but not- who is that, anyway, uh, no. No. No." He blinks and shakes his head.

"Ohh! Okie-dokie! Well, I'm Annabelle Leigh Bennett!" Her smile still has not faltered.

"Oh, like the poem, Annabel Lee? By Edgar Allen Poe?" Gabe breathes a sigh of relief, thinking for once he has said something remotely intelligent.

Her dainty eyebrows scrunch up slightly in confusion. "Who? Um, well, not, uh, exactly- it's… I actually go by Annie!" She finishes, beaming at him again.

"Oh okay." He says too quickly. There is a moment of pause, and he says, too quickly again, nervously. "Hi, Annie." He likes her name, and he hopes his nasally voice didn't muck it up.

She giggles and he relishes the sound. "I think we oughta go up, now, don't you think?"

"Uh, what? Oh yes! Ha, wow!" Gabe exclaims, and tries to discreetly check his watch. Ten minutes. They have been standing on the elevator for ten minutes? Impossible.

Gabe reaches out his hand to press the up button and he sees its trembling. _How embarrassing. _

The two stand in uncomfortable silence as the elevator car rises painstakingly slow.

_Ding. _The doors slide open, and Gabe starts to exit the elevator, at the same time Annie does.

A moment of awkward shuffling, and Gabe mentally curses himself for not letting her go first as they make their way to the office floor.

_Click, click, click_. Her shoes tap the tile floor, and Gabe wills himself to not look at her legs. Professional behavior, Gabe, professional work behavior…

He pulls open the glass door for her, winking at the camera.


	2. Chapter 2

Annabelle Leigh

Chapter Two

I don't own the Office or any of its characters, including the weirdly misunderstood Gabe Lewis, who really just needs a friendly blonde bimbo…

The office is deathly silent, as seven pairs of eyes take in the sight of Annie Bennett. Gabe stands awkwardly to the side, as Annie looks around and beams and waves at everyone. Only Kevin waves back. Angela frowns stiffly, Erin smiles back, albeit hesitantly, Andy wolf-whistles, and Pam uses her pen to close Jim's jaw.

Dwight angrily leaps from his seat, upturning his cup. "YOU KNOW THE CORPORATE POLICY ABOUT BRINGING PROSTIUTES OF ANY KIND INTO THE WORK SPACE, IS ILLEGAL ON THE PREMISES- "

Gabe's eyes bulge for the second time that day. "She's not a-, Dwight, just-"

"WELL. Who is this?" Michael waltzes out of his office, and quickly strides over to Annie, embracing her in a hug. He mouths _who is this _to Gabe over her shoulder.

"This is Annie, a potential employee!" Gabe tells him, eyebrows raised. He attempts to smile.

"Oh." Michael says, slightly crestfallen. "I thought my order-" Gabe shakes his head and Michael backpedals. "JUST KIDDING! So, you're hoping for a job here at THE GREATEST COMPANY IN THE WORLD?"

She eagerly nods, her blue eyes wide.

Michael laughs. "Oh, well, you have to do a lot more than be cute to get a job here! You have to have an extremely high work ethnic, not to mention admirable courage, dignity-"

Someone groans, probably Stanley, and Michal looks for the culprit.

Annie looks around too, confused, and decides it would be safe to giggle. Michael smiles like he's won the lottery. "You know what? Today, I feel like a good man. You're hired!" He finishes happily, jabbing his finger into her chest.

Pam kicks Jim hard under the desk. Jim clears his throat. "Uh, Michael, you haven't even interviewed her?" His voice lacks the usually confidence he speaks with, but Michael doesn't seem to notice.

"Oh right, right." He flaps his hand in the air. "Annie, why don't you and I go have a nice, private chat in my cozy little office?"

Annie beams. "That would be fantastic!" She turns towards the Dunder-Mifflin employees. "He-y, y'all! I'm really excited to work here! And I am lookin' forward to meeting each and every one of you!"

Michael places his hand on the lower of her back and escorts her into his office, closing the door behind him.

_-Kevin Talking Head- _

"Did you hear that? She _SAID_ _each_ and _EVERYONE _of us. "That-" He points a finger at himself. "Means me."

_-Dwight Talking Head- _

"Unfortunately, Michael has fallen prey to her puny prostitution trap, as have most of the male members of the office. I, on the other hand, am immune to her power, seeing as we are equal levels of attractiveness.. However, one woman wielding that kind of power? No. She would dominate. I will not let myself- Michael fall. Was she hot? YES. Are prostitutes allowed within a one mile radius of Dunder-Mifflin? No. She must. LEAVE." He grins his creepy Dwight grin at the camera.

_-Meredith Talking Head- _

"Look like I won't be the only trashy one around here." She smirks.

_-Andy Talking Head- _

He whistles under his breath, and looks over his shoulder in the direction of Michael's office. "Well. There is nothin', nuttin, I tell ya, like a good ol' southern girl. Did you hear her accent, man, that was H-O-T like… ", Andy pretends to rap while spelling, "..Hot like M-I-S-S-I-P-P-P-P-P-P-P-P-I! BAM. NARD-DOG IS IN THE HOUSE. WOOF WOOF."

_-Pam & Jim Talking Heads- _

"Oh my-" Pam sighs and rolls her eyes. Jim quickly copies her. Pam leans into the camera and hisses. "If that's the standard for working here now, I'm quitting. I really am." She leans back, crosses her arms, and looks at Jim pointedly. "What? Oh yeah, me too. Totally out of here…" He says, making a hand gesture towards the door. Pam rolls her eyes again.

_-Michael Talking Head- _

"Am I going to hire Annie? Yes. Why? She's nice…and *cough* hot…and, um…Gabe has a crush on her!" He finishes triumphantly. "ONCE again, I am using my cupid skills to benefit others, because…I am that kind of person. Who helps others."

_-Gabe Talking Head- _

He looks outraged. "What? Michael said I had a crush on Annie? That's, that's completely preposterous! Her clothing is unprofessional and entirely inappropriate…" He pauses, and a slow blush creeps up his neck. He feels the heat with his hand. "This, this is just a…a rash. A rash. It's a rash! I'm not blushing! " His blush deepens, and he gets up from his seat and leaves, closing the door behind him. Camera zooms in on him quickly crossing the office and heading into the bathroom.

Note: Although Gabe does fancy Annie, Michael is just using it as an excuse to hire her. Does that make sense? Michael does not pick up on the fact that Gabe really does like Annie. I just wanted to make that clear, because, well I don't know how to explain it, but it just is important. Reviews with tips, criticism or even hilarious flames will be accepted most graciously. :D

Next Chapter: The Library *insert generic name of library* and Beans! (Notice capitalization of Beans…oh, whatever could it mean? FIND OUT IN NEXT CHAPTER BECAUSE I KNOW YOU'RE GOING TO LOOSE SLEEP OVER IT. )


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